Once
more his soul groped in darkness, while the whole of his life
seemed unreal, a wavering, misty, hollow dream. And yet his
military duty was all real enough. He knew just what to do when he
reached the gate.
"Back there at once!" he commanded, not loudly, but with intense
force, "back there!" This to the inward surging wedge of excited
outsiders. Then to the guard.
"Shoot the first man who crosses the line!"
"Ziff! me voici! moi! Gaspard Roussillon. Laissez-moi passer,
messieurs."
A great body hurled itself frantically past Beverley and the
guard, going out through the gateway against the wall of the
crowd, bearing everything before it and shouting:
"Back, fools! you'll all be killed--the powder is on fire! Ziff!
run!"
Wild as a March hare, he bristled with terror and foamed at the
mouth. He stampeded the entire mass. There was a wild howl; a rush
in the other direction followed, and soon enough the esplanade and
all the space back to the barricades and beyond were quite
deserted.
Alice was not aware that a serious accident had happened.
Naturally she thought the great, rattling, crashing noise of the
explosion a mere part of the spectacular show. When the rush
followed, separating her and Beverley, it was a great relief to
her in some way; for a sudden recognition of the boldness of her
action in the little scene just ended, came over her and
bewildered her.
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